For what it's worth: Royal Oak comes in at #8 (Detroit: lofts, college)

[Tekkie]

Originally Posted by Arthur Digby Sellers

A used bookstore would be the way to go. Those can still be successful because the prices are lower than Amazon and the trade in aspect is something that the online retailers can't (yet) match.

B&N will soon be following Borders and Blockbuster into the brick and mortar scrap heap. They just don't offer enough value to justify how much more you pay over Amazon.

I'm wondering if they'll eventually become an online e-book reseller. They still have the Nook, which I think is a strong product.

[Arthur Digby Sellers]

Originally Posted by Tekkie

I'm wondering if they'll eventually become an online e-book reseller. They still have the Nook, which I think is a strong product.

They could. It depends on if they can pull the transition off successfully. The Nook is solid, but Amazon can undercut them into oblivion if they want to.

[DTWflyer]

Will Barnes & Noble bookstore last in Royal Oak? | Detroit Free Press | freep.com

The latest on the Barnes & Nobel saga in Royal Oak.

[Tiger Beer]

Pure Michigan: Royal Oak - YouTube

[Tekkie]

Originally Posted by Tiger Beer

Pure Michigan: Royal Oak - YouTube

I love those videos.

That one is spot on, too.

Downtown Royal Oak = Hoity-toity douche baggery

[adams_aj]

Well-done! That is sweet!

[one is lonely]

I work at bookstore, and from my vantage, the truth is that most people want a good library. You know, a library that meets the modern wants and needs of the typical person. They want coffee. They like classy music on low in the background. And they want NEW books to peruse, not some random 1980s book on psychology.

Borders, for example, was GREAT at packing people in. That was never their problem. The problem was they couldn't make a profit of off those people, because they treated it like a library.

Well, guess what? A public library doesn't have to make a profit. It just has to provide a service that enough people find valuable at a reasonable cost to taxpayers.

Of course, for a library to compete with B&N, you'd need more books and newer books. Yes, that costs money. But couldn't leasing space out to a company like Starbucks offset that a bit? Starbucks might not make a huge profit at - say - Detroit's main library branch, but as long as the company doesn't lose money, the PR boost alone would be huge.

Just turn up the music a lil' and - BAM! - you have that model people love so much (with maybe a "quiet room" for the old folks). And once you establish a better relationship with the local community, they're more likely to support library millages to keep services up (and get new books in). As it stands, most libraries are used almost exclusively by low income citizens to access the internet and other basic services, and are completely ignored by most taxpayers. It's high time libraries got with the times!

[adams_aj]

The only problem I see with your suggestion "One is Lonely" is that there is NO FOOD OR DRINK ALLOWED IN THE LIBRARY. Drives me crazy all of the fast-food and coffee commercials on TV, showing people enjoying their coffee and morning breakfast sandwiches IN THE LIBRARY. One commercial I think, even shows a LIBRARIAN shusshing loud talkers, while she's enjoying her SANDWICH AND COFFEE IN THE LIBRARY! GAK! Where I went to college, if you showed up at the door with a drink in your hand you were told to either dump it out in the nearby sink, or set it on the table at the door. THERE IS NO EATING OR DRINKING IN THE LIBRARY!!

OK, rant over, whew! Your point is taken. If one can figure out how to have new books and magazines in a place with Wi-Fi and coffee and music at a non-intrusive level and still make rent, then you might have something. . . . the only problem is the squatters. Starbucks has 'em, Panera has 'em, etc. You know the people: same as at Barnes and Noble: they sit there all day, turning the place into their living room.

OK, back on-topic. Is Royal Oak "cool" or "hip" or "t1ts" or "the bomb" (or whatever you hipster dbags use today) enough to be number 8 and why and how to move up the list or do you even want visibility to it on some list?

[belleislerunner]

Agree with the library concept. I'm trying to recall if the Ferndale public library allows coffee but I have spent many a lazy Saturday there. For those who haven't been - it's a pretty modern facility, complete with a quiet reading/magazine room with cushy chairs/couches and even a fireplace. Think Caribou Coffee setup but modern/not rustic. They have most daily newspapers/magazines - so it saves having to waste resources and buy the Freep/Det News/weekend WSJ etc as you can just read it there for free (without feeling guilty). It's right at 9 Mile and Woodward. Home. I like that most nights its open until 8PM and Saturday 10-6, so very accomodating.

[Arthur Digby Sellers]

Novi's public library is only 3 years old and it has all of the amenities that have been mentioned. There's a coffee/sandwich shop when you walk in, and I'm pretty sure you can eat or drink in the library itself. There's a massive magazine/periodical section that is circular and is laid out like a magazine section at a store. Lots of big, comfy chairs that you can read in by the fireplace. They have all kinds of awesome little touches like a drive-thru window where you can pick up books you reserved and a self-check out. The library has a welcoming, modern look and feel and is laid out more like a B&N/Borders than a stuffy public library.

I think most public libraries want to go in this direction, but the problem of course is funding. With so many cities is dire straits fiscally, libraries fall way down to the bottom of the priority list. However, I think a big, modern library like Novi's that is central to the community makes it a more desirable place to live. There are so many community events that the library is centrally involved in. Get out to your local city council meetings and support your library!